Don't Miss Your Cue to Take the Next Step
This week in Midlife Nomads: why remote work’s rollback is hitting women hardest, how “going independent” could be your best career move, and a small list that can help reignite your confidence.
✈️ Welcome to Midlife Nomads, your weekly hit of real talk, smart ideas, and helpful tools for building a location-independent life through remote work, travel, and business.
This week, we’re talking about all things progress and moving forward, despite what may be holding you back (hint: there’s lots, and there will always be lots).
We’ll take a look at why the rollback of remote work is hitting women hardest, how a so-called “demotion” to independent contractor could actually be your biggest win, and a creative shift that’s helping writers and entrepreneurs build something that lasts.
But first… I’ve been soaking up all I can of Edinburgh’s energy this past week. The cobblestone streets here echo with raucous cheers for fire-breathing, gravity-defying buskers and with the melodies of soulful musicians whose songs spill out over the crowds.
Some of it is soft and soulful. Some of it is loud enough to stop you mid-step.
Snippets of stand-up routines and one-person shows drift out of tucked-away venues. Performers and their crews weave through the crowd, pressing flyers into our hands, bursting with creativity, raw talent, and the oodles of bravery it takes to put your fresh work out into the world.
This is the Fringe Festival at full tilt. It’s not all polished. There are thousands of shows, from half-baked plays to big-name productions, each a leap of faith from the people who created them. Some performances are gloriously imperfect. Some probably won’t go anywhere after this month. But they’re here.
And they’re all here because someone decided, I’m going to do this. Then they actually did it.
Watching that kind of bravery up close has me thinking about how often we hold ourselves back… especially women. We underestimate our skills, downplay our wins, and talk ourselves out of opportunities before they even begin, while others with less experience but more audacity step forward.
Eleanor Roosevelt said, “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” But I’ve caught myself handing over that consent without anyone asking more often than I’d like to admit.
How about you?
This isn’t just a confidence issue. It’s a visibility issue. If we don’t name and claim our skills, no one else can value them properly, either.
So here’s a little experiment for the week. If you’ve been holding back on something, whether it’s launching an idea, pitching a client, or finally booking that trip, try this.
The 10 Things List
Grab a notebook (or the notes app on your phone).
Write down 10 things you’ve done in your life that you’re proud of. Big or small. Paid or unpaid. Personal or professional.
For each, jot a sentence about the skill, strength, or quality that made it possible.
By the end, you’ll have a snapshot of your own lived expertise. Take this as a reminder that you’ve done meaningful, impressive things, and you already have a foundation to build on.
Keep this list handy for the next time you start thinking, “Who am I to do this?”
Now, here are some things I’ve been reading and writing this past week… some motivating, some infuriating, but each one interesting or useful in its own way.
The Great Remote Rollback: Why Going Independent Makes More Sense Than Ever
Today in “this is why people hate their jobs,” another corporate giant threatens to order all remote working employees back into the office. All of the progress made — the flexibility, the autonomy, the proof that asynchronous and remote work can thrive — seems to be forgotten as companies scramble to reassert control over every waking hour of their employees’ lives. All the more reason to chart your own path and keep that freedom for yourself.
👉🏼 Read ‘Bad news Microsoft workers - tech giant is "considering" remote working crackdown’ at Tech Radar
You Don’t Need an MBA to Start Consulting (And You’re Probably More Qualified Than You Think)
If you’ve spent years teaching, managing a kitchen, running events, working in healthcare, or holding together a team under pressure, chances are pretty good that you’ve built skills you don’t even think to name.
Depth Over Dash: Building Work That Lasts
Sustainable growth doesn’t come from chasing algorithms, it comes from turning genuine curiosity into a repeatable creative practice. Alexander Lovell’s latest article shows you how to create a feedback loop between testing ideas in public and developing them in depth, so your work compounds in value over years instead of burning out in months.
When Remote Work Levels the Playing Field, the Office Tilts It Back Again
Corporate giveth… and it taketh away. Research from UC San Diego shows that women are holding onto remote and hybrid work at higher rates than men, partly because it makes balancing careers with caregiving possible. But with companies tying promotions and pay raises to in-office “face time,” the very flexibility that opened doors for women could now be slowing their advancement. If corporate culture can’t adapt, maybe it’s time to build a career that works entirely on your terms.
👉🏼 Read Is the Return to Office Leaving Women Behind? at UC San Diego Today
From W-2 to 1099: The “Demotion” That Might Be Your Biggest Career Upgrade
Many fear being shifted from employee to independent contractor, but Brian Clark argues it could be the ultimate freedom card. With AI reshaping work and companies seeking flexible talent, your “loss” might be the perfect launchpad for building a business on your own terms.
The Anti-Hustle Checklist: 7 Real Strategies for Remote Work Without Burnout
Let’s be honest: hustle culture doesn’t travel well. I know there are plenty of tech-bros and crypto folks who’ll disagree, but this is a hill I’ll die on.
Holding Onto Corporate Skills Can Sink Your Solo Business
Ana Calin left a high-powered director role only to discover that the habits that made her successful in corporate were sabotaging her as a solopreneur. She breaks down the key mindset shifts — from perfectionism to overwork — that turned her business into a sustainable, flexible, and far more fulfilling career.
🧰 Remote Work Tool of the Week: Quillbot
If you run a solo business, you’re probably writing more than you realize — client emails, blog posts, proposals, sales pages.
QuillBot’s Paraphraser, Humanizer, and AI Detector help you make that writing clearer, more natural, and ready to pass human review. It’s like having a fast, reliable editor on call whenever you need one.
Full disclosure: that’s an affiliate link, which means we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It helps support Midlife Nomads, and we only recommend tools we actually use and love.
✌🏻 Miranda